Things to Tell Your Doctor Before Treatment

Whenever your doctor prescribes a treatment, tell him or her if:

• You've taken the drug before (even if you had no unusual reaction)
• You had an unusual or allergic reaction to this drug
• You have or have had any other medical conditions, including:
  • Diabetes
  • Gout
  • Heart disease (or abnormal heart rhythms or congestive heart failure)
  • A head injury
  • Infection
  • An immune deficiency
  • Kidney disease
  • Kidney stones
  • Liver disease
  • Marrow depression
  • Low serum magnesium or potassium
  • Pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas)
  • A history of alcoholism
• You've recently been exposed to varicella (chicken pox) or herpes zoster (shingles)
• You've had an unusual or allergic reaction to any foods such as lactose or egg whites, preservatives, dyes, E. coli-derived proteins, albumin or retinoid (vitamin A) preparations
• You've ever been treated with radiation therapy or other cancer therapies (some cancer drugs may increase the effects of other medications or radiation therapy
• You take any vitamins, minerals, herbs or other supplements
• You're planning a family or have any concerns about intimacy, birth control, fertility, pregnancy or breastfeeding
• You take any other drugs (prescription or over-the-counter)
• You use illegal or street drugs, which can increase the toxicity of certain cancer drugs
• You're a smoker